If you are trying to loose weight but finding it hard to match your exercise to your calorie intake, still hungry after eating your calorie counted portions or unable to find the will power to eat so much less than normal when you still have to eat three meals per day then you might have started to think about weight loss surgery.

Surgery for weight loss are no longer perceived as~Surgical procedures for weight loss are no longer perceived as cosmetic surgery and there are a number of procedures available on the~and there are a variety of procedures available on the private heathcare market today. Liposuction has proven popular in recent years but it has its limitations, some complain that while it gets rid of the fat it does nothing for the way people eat leading to renewed weight gain.

However, because the fatty areas under the skin have been damaged the distribution of the new fat is uneven and unsightly. Another longer term solution is to have a gastric band fitted.

A gastric band is a restrictive device which inhibits the amount of food it is possible to eat at one sitting. The use of a gastric band causes a pouch at the neck of the stomach which will feel full once between 4 or 8 ounces of food have been eaten. Because the banded person feels full so quickly the desire to eat becomes less intense and less frequent resulting in weight loss.

The operation is suitable for people who are between the ages of eighteen and fifty five, the procedure has been performed on patients as young as twelve. However, in the young, other methods of adjusting the patients’ relationship with food are preferred. If you are within the age range and have a body mass index above 40, you are 99 pounds or more over your ideal weight and have been unable to loose weight through dieting or weight loss drug treatments and understand the risks of undergoing such surgery including lifelong dietary restrictions that are required for long term health then you might like to speak to your doctor about gastric banding.

Once the band has been fitted weight loss of one or two pounds per week isn’t unusual. Weight loss is most rapid immediately after surgery and heavier patients tend to loos weight faster than those who didn’t weigh so much before surgery.